The clock had struck 12. Not only did it mark the end of another day, but it marked the beginning of Ratha’s favorite month, October. He went downstairs to heat up some chicken nuggets as a quick snack. After opening the refrigerator, he noticed there was a shortage in ketchup. Ratha squeezed what little bit he could onto his plate and substituted the rest with Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce. As he was doing so, he let Bagel out into the backyard.

Upon opening the fairly heavy sliding door, Ratha was met by a chilly wind in between the patio and the carpet. An old friend, he thought. A distant, old friend. Stepping out onto the patio hasn’t felt as nostalgic since around this time last year. Bagel was peeing on the neighbor’s fence. The air lacked humidity, and it was crisp as ever. So crisp that perhaps the September apples may be jealous if they weren’t picked yet. The rain from earlier in the previous day had ushered in October with clear skies and a white moon. Premature dew lined the grass visibly courtesy of the combined effort from the street lights and the flood lights.

Crazy how a t-shirt and sweatshorts felt suffocating 24 hours ago, but now they seemed inadequate. Bagel finished his business and retreated back to the warmer indoor environment he had come from. Ratha followed him into the house to tend to his chicken nuggets. He went upstairs to watch reruns of The Cosby Show. In this particular episode, Theo had come home to tell Heathcliff and Claire he made the football team. Ratha laughed and ate his chicken nuggets for the duration of episode. Once the chicken nugget supply was exhausted and the credits began to roll, Ratha walked over to the window to let the blinds down. Before he pulled on the blind strings, he looked out the window and thought: welcome back old friend. Welcome back.

Overall Rating 4.25/5 stars